The Weekend...and All God's People said Roll Tide

I've been lucky and haven't suffered from the exhaustion I hear about this whole pregnancy. But this weekend, she did me in. We had a blast, but I'm in desperate need of a pajama day to recover.

Shamefully, I took few pictures, so I hope my narration is up to par. Friday night, we had Matt's parents over for dinner. Not only did she bring enough cake to feed 20 people (that had enough icing to feed 30 - my favorite kind of cake), she brought over some sweet baby things of Matt's.

Saturday, Fall briefly struck Alabama. We took advantage and went on a long(er) run. The weather made such a huge difference. There are few things I love more than a good Fall morning run before football. I dressed like a highlighter for the occasion.

We made it up to do the tiniest bit of yard work, wash our sweat off and get the house ready for friends. Oh, and of course time to make a cream cheese-sour cream-cheddar-sausage-rotel dip. Tis the season.

Matt went through great lengths to get me a festive drink so I wouldn't feel left out. I had no idea this stuff existed, but it wasn't too bad. It did lack the all important property of calming by blood pressure when I thought we were surely going to lose to Texas A&M AGAIN. Or when we got the 9384th penalty of the game. But in the end - the Tide Rolled. I need a bye week to recover.

Sunday we celebrated my mom and niece's birthdays. The highlight for me was the Ashley Mac's strawberry cake. Probably not the highlight for Kate. She was a fan of the colorful clothes.

Super fun weekend of food, family, football and friends (three stars for alliteration). I'll be at home washing my pajamas.

A Little Friday Q&A

Today I'm breaking away from the Friday Five brain dump to do a little Q&A with The Williams....

1. What is your favorite recipe?

It's hard to beat a good soup in the crock pot. White Chicken Chili or Taco Soup. I'm just waiting on the slightest change in temperature to take the plunge. Shredding your chicken in the Kitchen Aid mixer makes the White Chicken Chili, if you ask me. Which hey, you did!

A few key ingredients

2. What is your favorite hair product?

I've blogged about this recently, but right now I'm loving the Kenra Blow Dry Spray.

I love this too - and didn't realize how much until I ran out and my roots came running in. Yikes. This stuff is a lifesaver. I'll be picking up a can this weekend to get through to my next highlighting appointment.

3. What is the best vacation you have been on?

Hands down, Greece. Not only was it beautiful, it was the longest vacation I've ever taken, we were iPhone free and able to totally unplug. Plus, the food was amazing.

4. Tell us your favorite meal? 

Mexican, easy! I often take pictures of my Mexican because it's just that good it should be shared with a photo. A Chille Relleno (not fried, which is hard to find) and a quesadilla can make everything ok.

5.  Dream job?

I like my job pretty well right now. But I guess if I was choosing something as a total dream, could I review spas? I would be very thorough.

6. Christmas or Thanksgiving? 

I love them both, but I think overall, I like Christmas better. It's a true season, and I love decorating and all the time with friends and family. Last year was the first year in our house and I loved getting to decorate. 

7. Favorite clothes store? 

TJ Maxx for sure. I love finding a good bargain, and it seems there is always ones to be found, if you're willing to search around. I have to be in the mood, but some of my favorite things are from TJ!

8. What is your favorite Football team and do you have any traditions on game day? 

If you read my blog for any amount of time in the Fall, this is an easy one - Alabama! We are having quite the run right now, so the past few years have been super fun. We love having people over to watch, and make it down a couple times a year to Tuscaloosa to tailgate with friends.

Pivotal moment in last years heart stopper with LSU.

Namath enjoys the festivities too. 

Football season has great food. One of my favorite go to sites for a new dip - Plain Chicken.

9. Favorite TV Show?

I watch entirely too much TV. At least I recognize the problem. But if we're talking about shows I like to watch live and can't stand to miss, I would go with Dexter, Homeland and Parenthood.

10. DIY or buy everything? 

I like to think I'm crafty, and I've made a few DIY items. But for the most part, I buy. A few Pinterest inspired items as of late -

I think that ends this portion of our Q&A, and my brain already feels lighter on this Friday. Happy weekend, friends!

The Weekend. She was Glorious.

Dear Lord. How is the work week upon us already? I don't know. But the weekend was just about great enough to make it ok.

The neighborhood swan slowed my start to the weekend on Friday. You just take your sweet time crossing the road, buddy.

Although it was rough opening our eyes and getting out of our respective beds this morning, it was time. I hadn't stepped foot out of the house, except for a run, since Saturday afternoon. No makeup, nothing in my weekend wardrobe buy my cozys. It was everything I hoped it would be. I am ashamed to tell you how many hours of Sister Wives and Real Housewives of Orange County I watched Monday. Cleaning off the DVR counts as cleaning, right? 

The rain cleared up by Saturday morning, so we were able to get in our respective workouts, clean, mow the grass (MS),  move the guest room furniture from the soon to be nursery to the guest room upstairs, and plant these lovely ferns.

They are Kimberly Queen ferns, if you are looking for something tall and super easy to care for. I'm a fan of this fern.

After the adult chores were done, we christened the football season as it should be. With a double pack of cream cheese and sausage. Key ingredients to a good dip. The cream cheese added to your normal rotel ingredients: MAGICAL. But, I'm sure you aren't surprised.

Just in time for kickoff. I almost went for O'Douls, but decided not to waste the calories on drink when I had a double pack of cream cheese to conquer. I was so mature this weekend. 

You know you are getting old when a great weekend means you got plenty of time to relax with friends as well as clean the floors, do some yardwork and make a run to Costco. By that standard, it was a good one!

Five on Friday

1. Fall Fever

I'm tempted to call this Fall Fever edition, because I'm just about to die to feel that crisp in the air and make a soup in the crock pot. Rest assured, we are almost there, and I plan to get a head start on this long 3 day weekend.

2. The Start of College Football

Not only does this mean watching the Tide roll to 16, it also means gameday clothes, delicious food (mostly with a cream cheese base) and Saturdays spent with friends.

After (one) of the most exciting games of 2012. We had a couple of those at our house and they all turned the right way. I think our house is lucky!

Throwing back to 2011.

3. Fall Nail Colors
This may be one of the best parts of fall to me. I just love those dark colors. They look so much more polished (haha) to me than the pinks and corals in the summer. I'll be reuniting with my friend You Don't Know Jacques this weekend. I think it's a nice transitional color.

4. Wunderlist
I'm probably the last person on earth to get on board with this, but MS introduced me to this list app and I sent me other one packing. I LOVE that you can share lists, so in case someone else is close to the grocery, they can just zip right in and pick up needed items. They can also add or delete items. Genius. I've created a nice 'around the house' list for us to tackle on those pretty fall Saturdays. Pre-football. MS hasn't added to that one. Hmmm.

5. Fall Clothes
Maybe it's the change of season, but I always feel like I like fall and winter clothes the best. Leggings, scarves, long tops and boots are just fun to shop for - and there's so much cute stuff! After doing some fern shopping yesterday, I headed to my favorite store - TJ Maxx for some flats. Yes, this is 30. 

I went with the pair on the right. 

I hope your team wins this weekend (mostly), and you are planning on some ways to welcome in the fall. I declare, it is here.

Patriotic, Part IV

Back at the Museum of American History, we learned some more about victory gardens and canning, then headed into the modern era.

 Two steel beams from the World Trade Center.

 

 I loved the American Presidency exhibit.

"The presidency has made every man who occupied it, no matter how small, bigger than he was, and no matter how big, not big enough for its demands"

 Lincoln's top hat. It's incredible to me that we have this. On a related note, Ford's theater was one of my favorite stops. If you get a chance....go.

 

 They even had a shout out to one of my favorite movies. "I'm Andrew Shephard and I AM the president."

 Among the fun facts we learned - Lifetime actually contributed to something worthwhile, other than then turning my mind to total mush on Sunday afternoons. Good job, Lifetime.

 From there we headed to the newest monument, WWII.

 Freedom wall has 4,048 gold stars. Each one represents 100 American soldiers who died or remain MIA.

 Like I said, the views of the Washington monument from just about everywhere were so pretty.  

 

  In this temple, as in the hearts of the people for whom he saved the union, the memory of Abraham Lincoln is enshrined forever.

 We strolled by the White House on the way home. I wish we had signed up in advance to do a tour. Maybe in another four years.

 The next morning we got up and ran around the other side of the mall so we could see the Capitol building.

 Also so we could drink some beverages here during the game.

   And eat some of the BEST CUPCAKES I'VE EVER HAD IN MY LIFE at Baked and Wired in Georgetown.

 It was a more active vacation than some of our others. We are normally pretty low key vacationers -but we had such a great time learning some history and eating some refined sugar. If you get a chance, I recommend both.